Office of Coastal Management

Public Invited to Participate in Coastal Restoration Study

NEW ORLEANS – During the first two weeks of February, the New Orleans District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources, will host a series of public meetings to present the status and solicit comments on a comprehensive coastwide ecosystem restoration study now underway.

Federal and state managers of the Louisiana Coastal Area, Louisiana – Comprehensive Coastwide Ecosystem Restoration Feasibility Study, commonly referred to as LCA, are developing alternative plans during this phase of the study. The purpose of LCA is to determine how to implement the state’s Coast 2050 Plan. The Coast 2050 Plan, completed in 1998, is a set of comprehensive strategies to restore coastal Louisiana.

Louisiana has lost more than 1,500 square miles of marsh since 1930 and continues to lose 20-35 square miles each year. Marshes provide habitat for endangered species, reduce storm surge, protect a thriving oil and gas industry, and produce a generous fisheries harvest; a dynamic and bountiful landscape vital to the well-being of the state and the nation.

Four public meetings are scheduled as part of the LCA public involvement process. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and comment on any aspect of the study following scheduled presentations.

The meetings, all to begin at 6:30 p.m., will be held at the following locations: 
Tuesday, Feb. 4 – Belle Chasse Municipal Auditorium, 8398 Highway 23, Belle Chasse 
Thursday, Feb. 6 – Larose Civic Center, 307 East Fifth St., Larose 
Monday, Feb. 10 – Morgan City Auditorium, 728 Myrtle Street, Morgan City
Wednesday, Feb. 12 – Lake Charles Civic Center, 900 Lakeshore Drive, Lake Charles

More meetings will be held in April and May to present the results of alternative plan formulation. The LCA plan will be submitted to Congress for approval under the Water Resources Development Act of 2004.

Members of the public unable to attend the February meetings may submit their questions or comments to Troy Constance, senior project manager, CEMVN-PM-C, P.O. Box 60267, New Orleans, LA 70160-0267.

Additional information on the Coast 2050 Plan and the LCA Study can be found at: http://www.coast2050.gov/lca or http://www.mvn.usace.army.mil/prj/lca.

Contact: Julie Morgan, USACE, 504-862-2587 or Phyllis Darensbourg, DNR, 225-342-8955